Mechanism for raising contact-shoes on third-rail systems.



No. 688,869. Patented Dec. I7, 1901.

- s. H. LIBBY.

MECHANISM FOR RAISING CONTACT SHOES 0N THIRD'RAIL SYSTEMS.

(Application filed Aug. 24, 1897.) J

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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Patented Dec. l7 l9flll. S. H. LIBBY.

MECHANISM FOR RAISING CONTACT SHOES 0N THIRD RAIL SYSTEMS.

(Application filed Aug. 24, 1897.)

(No Model.)

l L e f 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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l/linemen STATES PATENT Car es...

SAM H. LIBBY, OF SCHENECTADY, YORK, ASSIGNOB TO THE GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEXV YORK.

MECHANISM FOR RAISING CONTACT-SHOES N THIRD-RAIL SYSTEMS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 688,869, dated December 17, 1901.

Application filed August 24, 1897 Serial No. 649,289. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern;

Be it known that I, SAM H. LIBBY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Schenectady, in the county of Schenectady, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Controlling Collectors of Electric Railways, (Case No. 57 9,)

of which the following is a specification.

The present invention has for its object to to provide an automatic means for lifting the contact shoe or shoes ofany of the well-known electric-railway systems out of engagement with the supply-conductor when for any reason this is desirable--as, for example, at the [5 time when the vehicles of one system cross the tracks of another system or switch from one track to another, thereby preventing the collector from either short-circuiting the system or being torn from its fastenings. The

partieulardisclosure herein is the application of the invention to a third-rail system; but it is evident that the invention can be applied to other electric-railway systems.

In'the accompanying drawings, attached to and made a part of this specification, Figure 1 is an end elevation of a vehicle with the contact-shoe in engagement with the third rail.

Fig. 2 isa side elevation of a car-truck. Fig.

3 is an enlarged detail view of the shoe. Fig.

4 is a detail view of the cam employed in raising the shoe. Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail of a spring holding device, and Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic view showing the position of the cams for raising the shoes.

55 The car-body A is mounted upon a truck of any suitable construction having wheels 13,

brackets l, and mounted thereon are rectangular pieces of wood D extending parallel to the axle of the truck, which support and insulate the casting D. The contact plow or In the The rail is supported by insutact shoe.

shoe D is suspended from the casting D by links d, which are slotted at cl to provide for a slight vertical movement of the shoe as it follows the irregularities in the third rail. The upper side of the contact-shoe is provided with a web, and formed. integral-therewith is a lug e, which in the normal operation of the shoe plays in a vertical direction in aslot cut in the lifting device E. The weight of the shoe D is usually sufficient to cause it to es- 6o tablish good electrical contact with rail C; but, if desired, springs may be employed.

Secured to the sides of the truck are castings forming bearings for the rock-shaft F. Sleeved on the portion F of the rock-shaft are arms E, which are secured at their lower ends to the block of insulation E On the lower end of the insulating-block is a metal fork E adapted to raise and lower the con- To permit a certain freedom of movement, slots are provided in the arms of the fork for the reception of lugs e, carried by the contact-shoe. Rigidly secured to the rock-shaft is a crank-arm G, and connected to its outer end is a red C.

On the lower portion of the truck is asupport H, comprising a casting having two outwardly-extending lugs in which is pivoted the bell-crank lever G The right-hand lug of the support extends outward a short distance 8;: beyond its mate, and to this extension is secured through its eye the ring or slotted disk I, which is employed in holding the bell-crank lever in its two positions. Arm G of the bell-crank lever is connected at itsouter end to red G. Arm G is arranged to project downward so that it will engage with the guide or cam L and be moved either toward or away from the wheel B, depending upon the angular position of the guide. An extension of the pivot-piece of CH and ll abuts alternately against the disk at opposite ends of the slotted part, thus preventing the disk from being acted upon by the spring I and causing the latter to maintain the collector D in either of its two positions. Secured to the pivot of rod G with arm G is a spring I, the opposite end of which is secured to the disk I. lVith the parts arranged as shown the center line through spring I and disk I is below the mo pivot of the bell-crank lever G2 with the support H and tends to hold the parts in the position shown. When arm G is moved toward the wheel by the guide L, the position ofthe spring-support changes and the center line is moved to a point above the pivot of the bell-crank lever, and the lever is held in this position until the relation of the parts is again changed by engaging with a guide L.

ning in one di'rectionaml lower them when runningin the opposite direction. A similar guide, Fig. (5, located at some distance beyond, but having its angular position with respect to the rails reversed, is employed to reverse the operation performed by the first guide.

Vehicles when arranged for operation on third-rail systems areusually provided with at least two shoes and sometimes four, which are disposed at opposite ends of the vehicle, and the same guides or cams are preferably employed to operate both lifting devices.

When operated in connection with a singletrack road and the cars reversed, a guide L is employed to operate the shoes and is located on the opposite side of the track. \Vith constructions employing a third rail the top of which is about the saute height as that of the traffic-rails, there is danger of short-circuiting when a train crosses another system or when a'train passes from one track to another. In addition to this the height of the contact-shoes is such that they are extremely likely to strike the traffic-railswhen crossing and be torn from their fastenings.

The operation of the invention is as follows: hen the train reaches a point where guide L is located, the arm G3 of the bell-crank lever will engage therewith and be moved outward away from the wheel. This will impart movement to the crank-shaft F through the rod G, thereby raising the lifting device E. As soon as the arm G3 moves a certain distance, the spring I will snap over the deadcenter and retain the contact shoe in its raised position until a second guide is reached, which forces the parts back to the position shown in the drawings.

I have shown myinvention employed in raising and lowering a single shoe; but it is evident that a number of such shoes may be operated thereby. Furthermore, the invention is not limited in its application to any particular type of electric railway, as the third-rail system illustrated herein, but may be applied to any railway on which are used electrically-propelled vehicles carrying movable current-collectors.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. The combination in a railway, with a vehicle, of means for transmitting power, a power-collector carried by the vehicle and adapted "to engage with said transmitting means, and means adapted to be engaged by the moving vehicle to cause the collector to be withdrawn and held from and to resume and be held in engagement with said transmitting means.

The combination in a railway, with a vehicle, of means for transmitting power, a power-collector carried by the vehicle, means for holding said collector from engagement with and in engagement with said transmitting means, and means adapted to be engaged by the moving vehicle to release said collector from said holding means in one position, move the collector to another position and cause the holding means to become operative in the latter position.

3. The combination with an electric vehicle, of feeding-conductors therefor, a current-collector carried by the vehicle movable with respect to said conductors, and means adapted to be engaged by the moving vehicle to release the collector from any one position to gradually move it to another position and lock it in the latter position.

4. The combination with a traveling vehicle, of a contact-rail, a contact-shoe carried by the vehicle and adapted to make contact with the rail, a device for moving the shoe, means situated beside the track for causing the device to lift the shoe, and a second means situated a certain distance from the first for causing the device to lower the contact-shoe into engagement with the contact-rail.

5. In an electric railway, the combination of a traveling vehicle, a contact-rail, a contact-shoe carried by the vehicle and adapted to make contact with the rail, a lifting device secured to the shoe, a lever connected with the lifting device, means for maintaining the shoe in its extreme positions, and a guide or cam located beside the track for actuating the lever.

6. In an electric railway, the combination of a traveling vehicle, a contact-shoe carried thereby, a contact-rail, a lifting device for moving the shoe into and out of contact with the rail, a bell-crank lever, one arm of which is connected to the lifting device, the other arm being arranged to project downward and engage with a cam orguide located near the track, and means independent of said guide for holding the contact-shoe in its raised and lowered positions.

7. In an electric railway, the combination of a traveling vehicle, a contact-shoe carried thereby, a contact-rail, a truck, a crank-shaft supported thereby, a connection between the crank-shaft and the shoe, a support mounted on the truck to which is pivotally secured a bell-crank lever, a rod connecting one end of the lever with the crank-shaft, a guide or cam located beside the track for engaging with the other arm of the lever for moving the shoe into and out of contact with the contact-rail, and means independent of said guide for holding the contact-shoe in its raised and lowered positions.

8. The combination of an electric motor, a support secured thereto, insulating material mounted on the support, a casting mounted on the insulating material, and a contact connected to the casting.

9. The combination of an electric motor mounted upon a truck, a pair of brackets supported thereby, blocks of insulating material supported by the brackets and extending parallel with an axle of the truck, a casting having downwardly-extending ends, a contactshoe adapted to rest upon a contact-rail, and slotted-link connections between the casting and the shoe.

10. The combination, in an electric thirdrail traction system, of a contact-maker adapted to collect current from a conductor, a guide or cam along the track at a point or points where the contact-maker needs to be tempo rarily removed from the rail, having a long gradually-diverging actuating-surface, a cooperating member on the truck connected with the contact-shoe and arranged to automatically lift the shoe at such point or points, and means independent of said guide for maintaining the contact-maker in its extreme positions.

11. The combination with an electric vehicle, of feeding-conductors therefor, a movable collector carried by said vehicle and adapted to be held from movement from its inoperative position, and means adapted to be engaged by the moving vehicle whereby said collector is released.

12. The combination in an electric railway, with a traveling vehicle, of a contact-rail, a power-collector, and a device arranged in a horizontal plane at an angle to the track-rails and adapted to be engaged by the moving vehicle to cause said collector to be moved vertically.

13. The combination in a railway, of a car, a vertically-movable collector carried by the car, means for securing the collector in its operative position, means for automatically raising the collector above the surface between the rails, means for automatically securingthe collector in its raised position, and means for automatically releasing the collector.

14:- The combination in a railway, of a car, a vertically-movable collector carried by the car, means for securing the collector in a position above the surface between the rails, means for automatically releasing the collector, and means for gradually lowering the collector to its operative position.

15. The combination with a car, of a-mov-.

able power-collector carried thereby, a movable member arranged to hold the collector against casual movement, and a resilient stop for holding said member against casual movement.

16. The combination with a car, of a movable powercollector carried thereby, a stationary device adapted to be engaged by said car to move said collector, and a spring for holding the collector in either position to which it has been moved.

17. In a railway,the combination witha car, of a vertically-movable collector carried thereby, a movable member adapted to hold the collector against casual movement, a spring for holding said movable member from casual movement, and means for automatically overcoming the effect of said spring and moving the collector vertically.

18. The combination with a vehicle, oi": feeding-conductors therefor, a movable powercollector carried by the vehicle, and a guide located in a horizontal plane at an angle with the direction of movement of the vehicle, and adapted to transmit a portion of the energy of the moving vehicle to said movable collector.

19. The combinationin a railway, with a vehicle, of a power-collecting device carried thereby and adapted to be moved into its operative and inoperative positions,and a spring tending to maintain said collector in either position.

20. The combination in a railway, with a vehicle, of a power-collecting device carried thereby, means adapted to be engaged by the vehicle to move said collecting device from one position to another, and a spring tending to maintain said collecting device in the latter position until the vehicle engages similar means for moving the collecting device.

21. The combination with a support H, of a lever G and a slotted disk I, both pivoted to the support, the pivot of G2 being adapted to engage in the slotted portion of I, a working lever G pivoted to G and a spring secured between the disk I and the pivot-piece of G and G 22. The combination with an electricallypropelled car, of a vertically-movable collector carried thereby, means whereby thecollect-or is automatically raised from and lowered to the supply-conductor along the way by the movement of the car, and means for automatically maintaining the collector in its lower and upper positions.

23. The combination with an electrically ing the collector to and from the supply-con ductor, and automatically-operating means which is capable of holding the collector in its positions in and out of contact with the supply-conductor.

25. The combination with an electricallypropelled vehicle, of a movable collector carried thereby, and means carried by the vehicle for automatically maintaining the colleetor in its extreme positions.

26. The combination with an electricallypropelled vehicle, of a collector carried thereby which is movable to and from the supplyconductor, means forholcling the collector in 

